HONEY PLANTS 145 



ored product, strong in flavor and not to 

 be compared with the beautiful white 

 honey from other plants. However, this 

 dark honey finds a market and often the 

 quotations are but little below those for 

 clover. 



Speaking of dark honey reminds me 

 that a word should be said about "honey 

 dew." 



Frequently we find in the hives a dark 

 strong substance that appears to be honey 

 but that obviously is not. The bees gather 

 it and store it exactly as they would the 

 product from the flowers but they get it 

 from the plant lice. Honey dew is noth- 

 ing more or less than an excretion from 

 the "honey tubes" of the aphids that feed 

 on many plants. Some seasons the bees 

 will gather tremendous quantities of this 

 stuff and load up their storage space 

 pretty liberally. It serves them well for 

 brood rearings in the spring, but when it 

 is gathered late in summer and used as 

 winter food it often causes serious damage. 



